Treat range as something you measure with a real sensor at the farthest point, not something you assume from a brochure.
Height and Line of Sight
Radio range depends mostly on how clear the path is. Mount the antenna as high as practical and above nearby obstacles. Buildings, metal, dense vegetation and terrain all cut range, so a gateway in open country reaches much further than one inside a concrete building.
Indoor and Outdoor Gateways
An outdoor gateway on a mast or rooftop gives the widest coverage. An indoor gateway suits a single building or floor, and concrete and metal reduce its reach. Sensors inside metal cabinets or cold rooms need extra planning because the enclosure blocks the signal.
Antenna and Cable
Use an antenna made for the AS923 band and keep the cable between gateway and antenna short, because long cables lose signal. Mount the antenna upright and away from metal surfaces.
Backhaul
The gateway forwards what it hears over an IP connection. Plan a reliable uplink such as Ethernet, cellular or a fixed link, and plan power. A gateway with no backhaul hears sensors but delivers nothing.
Test with a Real Sensor
Before rollout, place a real sensor at the farthest and worst locations and check the received signal strength and signal-to-noise ratio at the gateway. Leave a margin, because conditions change with weather and growth.
Capacity and Redundancy
A sensor message can be received by every gateway in range, and the network server removes the duplicate copies, so overlapping coverage from two gateways improves reliability. Many sensors reporting often can also load a single gateway, so report only as often as the value needs.
Common Questions
How far can a LoRaWAN gateway reach?
In open terrain with a clear line of sight, LoRaWAN can reach kilometres. Inside buildings and in dense areas the range is much shorter. The practical answer comes from testing a real sensor at the farthest point, because walls, metal and vegetation all change it.
How many LoRaWAN gateways do I need for a site?
It depends on the area, the obstacles and how many sensors report how often. Start with one well-placed gateway, test the farthest sensors, then add a second where signal is weak or where you need redundancy. Overlapping coverage improves reliability.